Environmentalism

On the occasion of World Environment Day on Friday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi highlighted the government's various efforts over the past decade, noting that they resulted in India's key successes such as expanding green cover and a rise in the populations of several animals. The prime minister also commended citizens for showing how collective efforts, policies, belief in science and innovation can improve the environment. "Best wishes to everyone on World Environment Day. I would like to applaud all those passionate about environmental conservation," he said in a post on X. Modi emphasised that this day serves as a reminder to reaffirm "our commitment to protecting our environment and furthering growth that is sustainable". He outlined that the past decade has seen numerous initiatives from his government in this regard. "Some of India's key successes include expanding green cover and a rise in the population of several animals," he said. World Environment Day is celebrated ..

As AI models become cheaper and more attractive, the report expects this to encourage new uses and higher volumes of use, eroding and possibly erasing any savings from efficiency advances

The goal of World Environment Day 2026 is to increase public awareness of environmental problems like deforestation, climate change, biodiversity loss, etc. It is celebrated every year on June 4

The National Biodiversity Authority (NBA) has realised Rs 21.26 crore under the Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) mechanism during the financial year 2025-26, officials of the environment ministry said on Saturday. The ABS mechanism, established under the Biological Diversity Act, ensures that benefits arising from the utilisation of biological resources are shared fairly and equitably with local communities, Biodiversity Management Committees, farmers, and traditional knowledge holders. The funds generated contribute directly to biodiversity conservation, sustainable use of biological resources and livelihood enhancement at the grassroots level. "The amount was generated from approvals granted for research, commercial utilisation, intellectual property rights, bio-survey and bio-utilisation of biological resources, reflecting growing industry participation in India's biodiversity governance framework," an official said. During the period, the seed sector emerged as the largest ...

The Goa government has notified 4 lakh square metres of ecologically sensitive land around the protected heritage precinct of Old Goa and a patch of mangroves in St Cruz village panchayat as 'no development zones', banning any construction or development activity in these land parcels. State Town and Country Planning Minister Vishwajit Rane on Saturday said that the conservation of these areas, comprising orchards, salt pans, and mangroves, has been carried out under section 39(A) of the Town and Country Planning Act. The Town and Country Planning (TCP) Board, in a notification on Thursday, declared a total of 1.02 lakh square metres of land around Old Goa, comprising partly of orchards and an archaeological park, as a 'no development zone'. Old Goa is the former colonial capital of the coastal state and a UNESCO World Heritage site comprising churches and colonial Portuguese-era structures. The TCP Board has also notified 3.37 lakh square metres, comprising salt pans, mangroves an

MoEF&CC seeks an action taken report from Odisha over proposal to fell over 2,000 trees at NIT Rourkela, flagging environmental concerns and asking for detailed examination

India and Finland have renewed their MoU on environmental cooperation to deepen collaboration on pollution prevention and control, waste management, climate change, forests and natural resource management, Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav has said. The renewal of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) comes during the four-day visit of Finnish President Alexander Stubb. "Happy to note that India has renewed the Memorandum of Understanding on Environmental Cooperation signed in 2020, deepening cooperation on pollution prevention and control, waste management, climate change, forests and natural resource management through knowledge and technology cooperation," Prashan said in a post on X. According to officials, the renewed MoU will continue to provide a structured framework for collaboration and exchange of best practices between the two countries on, inter alia, prevention and control of air and water pollution (including remediation of contaminated soil); waste management ...

The Supreme Court on Thursday refused to entertain a petition filed by Congress leader Jairam Ramesh concerning retrospective environmental clearances to projects. A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi questioned how can the petitioner seek a review of its earlier verdict by way of a writ petition. "Please tell us how the writ is maintainable. We know the design behind these kind of writ petitions. There was a judgement. That has been set aside by a larger bench in review. Now, you are indirectly filing a review petition," the CJI told the counsel appearing for Ramesh. "Be ready for exemplary cost," the CJI said. As the bench showed its disinclination in entertain the petition, the counsel sought permission to withdraw it. The bench permitted him to withdraw the plea with liberty to avail remedy in accordance with law. On November 18 last year, reversing its own verdict, the top court paved the way for retrospective environmental clearance by the Centre

Despite climate and biodiversity risks, a UN report finds the world spent $7.4 trillion damaging nature in 2023, around 30 times more than it invested in protecting ecosystems

Renowned ecologist Madhav Gadgil, who chaired the Western Ghats panel and championed community-led conservation, passed away at 83, leaving a lasting legacy in Indian environmentalism

Noted ecologist Madhav Gadgil, known for his work on the Western Ghats, has passed away in Pune after a brief illness, family sources said on Thursday. He was 83. Gadgil breathed his last late Wednesday night at a hospital in Pune, the sources said. In 2024, the United Nations presented Gadgil with the annual Champions of the Earth award, the UN's highest environmental honour, for his seminal work on the Western Ghats, a global biodiversity hotspot. Gadgil had chaired the government-constituted Western Ghats Ecology Expert Panel to study the impact of population pressure, climate change, and development activities on the ecologically fragile region in India.

The state, which turned 25 on Sunday, is doing well on economic metrics, but ecological concerns remain. Indivjal Dhasmana writes

Arunabha Ghosh, founder & CEO of Delhi-based think tank CEEW, speaks about his role as an envoy for South Asian nations at the Conference of Parties

Her discoveries in the 1960s about how chimpanzees behaved in the wild broke new ground and represented what was called "one of the Western world's great scientific achievements"

The Supreme Court on Monday said it would pass on September 23 its order in a suo motu matter concerning issues relating to ecology and environmental conditions prevailing in Himachal Pradesh. "List on September 23 for order. We will give you a brief order after summarising everything so that you can get specific instructions," a bench of Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta told the lawyers appearing for Himachal Pradesh. During the hearing, Himachal Pradesh's advocate general and additional advocate general informed the bench about a report filed by the state in the matter. Senior advocate K Parmeshwar, who is assisting the court as an amicus curiae in the matter, said the report filed by the state covered many aspects, including tree cover. On July 28, a different bench of the apex court had said the state might "vanish in thin air" if the situation did not change. Observing the situation in the state had deteriorated, the top court had said climate change was having a "visib

The Supreme Court on Wednesday granted six weeks to the Telangana government to come out with a "good proposal" for holistic restoration of Kancha Gachibowli forest site, saying the state government will have to replant the uprooted trees. A bench of Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran said the forest area needs be restored. The top court reiterated that it was not against development but the environment needs to be protected. "Time and again, court has observed that we are not against development but it has to be a sustainable development. While carrying out developmental activities, the interest of the environment and the wildlife has to be taken care of by ensuring mitigating and compensatory measures. if the state comes up with such a proposal we will welcome such a proposal," the bench said while posting the matter after six weeks. Senior advocate Abhishek Singhvi, appearing for the Telangana government, submitted that that state is looking at the whole propos

To ensure minimum disturbance to Himalayan ecology, due care was taken for slope stabilization and the best institutes were roped in for execution of the Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link, including Chenab and Anji Bridge, the Lok Sabha was informed on Wednesday. On questions whether the government has conducted any environmental impact assessments of the Chenab and Anji Khad bridges in fragile Himalayan zones, the Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw provided an elaborate response on Environmental Impact Assessments of the project. Vaishnaw said that Udhampur-Srinagar-Baramulla Rail Link (USBRL) project having a total length of 272 km has been recently commissioned and it covers Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur, Reasi, Ramban, Srinagar, Anantnag, Pulwama, Budgam and Baramulla districts. The USBRL project is one of the most difficult new railway line projects undertaken in the country post-independence. The terrain passes through young Himalayas, which are full of geological surprises

The corporate affairs ministry should set up an ESG oversight body to actively combat greenwashing activities and also put in place penal provisions for fraudulent ESG claims, according to a Parliamentary panel. Generally, greenwashing refers to claims by companies about any product or service having a climate-friendly impact. ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) principles are part of the Companies Act, 2013. In its report tabled in Parliament on Monday, the Standing Committee on Finance mentioned the ministry's demurral against establishing a dedicated ESG oversight body, citing that the prevailing disclosure-based regime, underpinned by a company board's accountability and extant penal provisions, constitutes an adequate monitoring mechanism. Against this backdrop, the panel urged the ministry to "establish a dedicated ESG oversight body for actively combating greenwashing through specialised forensic expertise" as well as formulate sector-specific guidelines and extend .

The Supreme Court has flagged the ecological imbalance in Himachal Pradesh and cautioned that the entire state may "vanish in thin air" if the situation does not change. Observing that the situation in Himachal Pradesh has gone from bad to worse, the apex court said climate change is having a "visible and alarming impact" on the state. "We want to impress upon the state government and Union of India that earning revenue is not everything. Revenue cannot be earned at the cost of environment and ecology," a bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan said. "If things proceed the way they are as on date, the day is not far when the entire state of HP may vanish in thin air from the map of the country. God forbid this doesn't happen," it said. The top court made the observations on July 28 while dealing with a petition against an order of the Himachal Pradesh High Court, which declined to entertain a plea challenging the state's June 2025 notification declaring certain areas as "gr

The decision comes after a Supreme Court ruling allowing the Trump administration to slash the federal work force and dismantle agencies